Heavy rainfall has caused disruption and damage on roads across Scotland.
In the early hours of Wednesday (12 August) heavy rain damaged the carriageway of the A68 at Fala Dam, with a large crater appearing in the road.
A full closure was put in place with a signed diversion route of 27.5 miles for both southbound and northbound traffic – adding an extra 7.5 miles and 13 minutes to journeys.
Joanne Turner, Amey’s principal civil engineer with the South East Trunk Roads Unit, said: ‘Geotechnical investigations into the extent of the damage and the necessary repairs are ongoing, and further updates will be provided by Transport Scotland and the relevant Operating Company.
‘A timeframe for the repair will be developed once investigations are completed and more information will be provided in due course.’
The reference to the relevant operating company reflects the fact that from Sunday, the South East Trunk Roads contract, which has been operated by Amey since 2014, will transfer to BEAR Scotland. Amey will take over the South West contract from Scotland TranServ.
A Transport Scotland spokesperson told Transport Network: ‘The handover should have no impact on the repairs as Amey and BEAR are working on the project together.’
The damaged section of trunk road is within the Scottish Borders. A spokesperson for the Scottish Borders Council told Transport Network that no serious damage had been caused to its local roads.
However, roads in Fife, Aberdeenshire and Perthshire were closed with the town of Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire, near the site of Wednesday's fatal train derailment, also flooded.
Image from BEAR Scotland
On the other side of the country, severe weather warnings have exacerbated a new closure of the A83 at Rest and Be Thankful, after a huge landslide blocked the road on 4 August, with what trunk road operator BEAR Scotland described as ‘car-sized boulders’.
BEAR said the landslide is thought to have moved around 6,000 tonnes of debris down the hill, ‘one of the largest landslips in recent times’.
Some debris also reached the Old Military Road, which is used as a diversion. Although this reopened at the weekend, it has been closed overnight, including from 9pm on Wednesday until 6am on Thursday.
On Wednesday, Eddie Ross, BEAR Scotland’s north west representative said: ‘Further weather warnings for thunderstorms are in place across large areas of Scotland throughout the day into the evening, which have the potential to bring sporadic heavy localised rain showers.
‘We need to prioritise safety of road users and with the amount of loose debris still present in the channels we’ve decided to close the route overnight for a third night as a precaution and in the interest of keeping everyone safe.
‘We’ll assess the route at first light tomorrow morning and reopen the road as early as we can once considered safe to do so.
‘Designs are being finalised this week which will allow us to have a clear understanding of a timeline to completing the repair work and safely reopening the A83.’
Register now for full access
Register just once to get unrestricted, real-time coverage of the issues and challenges facing UK transport and highways engineers.
Full website content includes the latest news, exclusive commentary from leading industry figures and detailed topical analysis of the highways, transportation, environment and place-shaping sectors.
Use the link below to register your details for full, free access.
Already a registered? Login
